Poster: A snowHead
|
Oleski wrote: |
@BergenBergen, @DJL, thanks. Is it worth buying the vignette in advance? I am thinking of scenario where the pas is shut and detour through France is a better option, so last minute decision around Djon is needed |
Oleski, I've just seen this. We bought online via Swiss Travel last year for Feb half term. The Vignette came in the post within a few days. https://switzerlandtravelcentre.co.uk/excursion/motorway-vignette-switzerland/
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
@knackered knees, thanks Will wait and see what conditions are closer to the trip
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
Anyone coming in Jan 2019, remember that your 2018 vignette is valid until 31st jan 2019.
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
We are considering starting earlier and doing a 2 day stop in Strasbourg for Christmas Market, then early Saturday push for Chatel.
Is it doable? What's the best route? Google suggests via Basel-Bern (e25)
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
For the record, Oct 27-31, everyone's favourite snow accumulator says Avoriaz will get 118cm
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
@polo, though that's for the top of the ski area, not the resort of Avoriaz itself.
Also, the previous forecast was for quite a bit less, so forecast totals are wobbling around a bit.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Still a little early to be getting excited
|
|
|
|
|
|
@denfinella, yep 2450m, but at least it's wobbling the right way....other sources and runs suggesting 30-40 low down....which would still be amazing all things considered
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
@under a new name, there are entire threads already devoted to that. I am remaining calm, posting only facts. May be different down the pub later for the hastily convened touring party strategy meetup.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@polo, seriously? You refer to "facts" and snowforecast in the same sentence?
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
|
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
|
@DJL, yeah, “ snowforecast” - is such a misnomer.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The only fact I alluded to was that snowforecast predicted x cm's on x date. The fact that it uses GFS Op data means it's just as likely to be right or wrong as all GFS snow charts on the weather thread.
In any case, check out the Avoriaz webcam, seems to be piling up nicely already, and snowing to 1500m in LG
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
It has snowed in Les Gets! Nothing settled at village level and it's now raining but we need wet stuff more than white stuff. Snowline seems to be at about 1200m
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
Th new Pierre Longue 6 seat lift has Progressed greatly in the last 4 weeks ...
Looks like it might be ready for the start of the season.
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
WindOfChange wrote: |
Looks like it might be ready for the start of the season. |
I hope so
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
@BergenBergen, How long does it take to get from Thollon LM to PLJ?
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
@WindOfChange, About 40 minutes.
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
Morzine covered in snow as I drive thru, guess I picked the wrong week to haul the kitchen to the skip / quit sniffing glue etc
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
Quick lunch time hike from 1500-1700m, snow was great....probably 15cm on top of the crust from Sunday, easy hike up to La Croix in just snowboard boots (crunchy snow barely above the grass, mixed with knee deep drifts). First time I've ever boarded in October.
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
Like the dog!
|
|
|
|
|
|
I've got a better one for you
|
|
|
|
|
|
nice
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
I'm watching this thread like a hawk, as I am heading out to Morzine for the season, just after new year. It's been 5 years since my last season, and I missed skiing at all last year, due to injury.
It is statistically impossible that after a record season, we should have another one in the Alps. But blind hope is a thing, people. It really is. These pictures help.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Harry Flashman, by some measures, last season wasn’t actually that great ...
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
Really? Everyone keeps telli g me that it was epic!
|
|
|
|
|
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
|
@Harry Flashman, Jan and Feb had a lot of rain below 2000, and April was just warm. So, like every season at this altitude, you have to make the most of what shows up.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Harry Flashman,
Quote: |
Really? Everyone keeps telli g me that it was epic!
|
We were only there for 2 weeks in Jan and 2 weeks in March 2018 and they were epic. Especially considering that the start of the previous 2 seasons had been awful, Monte Chery lifts were opened for mountain bikes in Dec 2016 and Mar 2017 was sunbathing weather. The good side of that was that it was also very quiet.
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
The fact that they reopened Arare in June for the ski club should give you an idea of how good last season was.
It is still pretty cold here at 1250m & some of the snow that fell at the weekend is still on the ground.
It will not be here in a few days, but at least the ground is starting to cool down now, and we have had some precipitation.
This is on the back of months of warm dry weather, which has left many lakes with unseasonably low water levels.
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
@WindOfChange, I would have to say that opening Arare in June does not give me any indication as to how good a season might be...
I heard lots of complaints from the tourers on here as to how poor a touring season (March-May) it was in many places as it was the wrong snow and the wrong weather.
If you were only skiing on piste, it was pretty consistently good-excellent.
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
under a new name wrote: |
@WindOfChange, I would have to say that opening Arare in June does not give me any indication as to how good a season might be... |
It tells you that the relationship of snowfall / snow melt was way better than previous years, when normally the Ski Club pootle off to Saas Fe or another glacier for out of season training.
We neither tour nor use the piste much, so would not really know about that side of things.
We ride the freeride zones, use snowparks, and natural features like the half pipes in Les Crosets.
In previous years the snowfall / snow melt relationship renders Les Crosets terrain unusable by mid march, but this year it went much longer.
This year we had loads of sunny afternoons in the parks, the stash was rideable till the end of the season, Happy Valley was great right to the end.
Crozats stayed in good nick, and we even did a moonlight hike and ride one balmy May night on Chery nord.
In our 3rd year living out here (2006) Avoriaz had bonkers snowfall, but for some reason the season just gone seemed "better" - maybe its the effect of recency Vs primacy?
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
@WindOfChange, could be.
You get better sunshine I believe than we do in Chamonix so maybe you disn’t complain so much in April about the lack of hot sunshine as we did!
Also, we are usually in Geneva during the week so have weekend only observations. I know we missed a few powder mornings!
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
@WindOfChange, @under a new name, we were in PDS for two months last year. The weather was awful, barely any sun, grey/white sky, and snow most days. But it snowed. And snowed. And snowed some more. I'm not complaining.
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
The Team Boredsurfin are coming to the Yeti Bar for a days skiing on December 27th I see that I can get a day pass for €37 on the Les Gets website, does anyone know a way to pay less?
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
All of these are less than €37
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
|
|
If the Snow is half decent, just get the Mt Chery Pass.
The rest of Les Gets is crowded & crap for boarders anyway.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@WindOfChange, so you keep saying, strange that it gets so crowded, yet is still "crap". I've been boarding there for 4-5 seasons and still love it....I only tend to go up when the snow is good though, and stay off the pistes (unless they haven't been bashed, like last December). I actually find the bigger higher resorts nearby much busier and harder to find untracked snow due to competition (Avoriaz, Cham, Flaine). But it just comes down to how well you know a spot, and how easy it is for you to get there.
Dusting of snow down to 1800 last night in Avoriaz, reckon 10+cm fell above 2000m.
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
@polo, I am happy that you still love Les Gets as a boarding destination.
Maybe the reasons it gets crowded despite being crap are:
- because there'e lots of accommodation there
- it has lots of wide easy pistes on which people are comfortable
- it is easy to get to when you're bored with the Pleney
- people disposed with a curiosity to explore the extremities of the PdS lift pass will end up there at some point
- there are lots of ski schools there
- its the first part of the PdS you get to when coming from the motorway and there's a big-ass car park at the Perrier
It is better suited for skiers than boarders as:
- there are long flats and traverses in places on the Chavannes and towards Nyon
- the park is a bit limited
- the boarder X is a bit lame
- there's not loads of off piste / free ride ( although is applies to skiers too)
Places like Linga, PLJ are better for boarding as there are fewer people ( further from accommodation ), much more off piste, fewer flats and traverses, and it is more central in the PdS scheme of things so easy access to La Chapelle Park, The Stash, Arare Boarder X, Super Chatel Boarder X, Smooth Park, Happy Park etc...
We have lived in the PdS for 14 years now, and just find that in terms of boarding, apart from Mt Chery we avoid Les Gets.
We ski a couple of days per season there, when friends come out, and it is perfectly fine for a nice day out and a good lunch.
But to each ones own.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@WindOfChange, this place reminds me of the Monty Python argument sketch sometimes, is this a 5min argument or the full half hour?
So what you're saying is LG isn't crap for: super easy access, accommodation, beginners, intermediates, exploring, schooling, car parking and lunch. How about some of the best views of Mont Blanc from anywhere in the alps. While I agree that Chatel in my limited experience has better terrain, and is generally quieter, LG is probably a lot sunnier / more open aspect. And there's plenty of off piste to have fun in, I haven't even tackled the best bits yet but hoping to join a guided group this season.
What flat area's are you referring to on Chavannes / Nyon ? The top near La Croix / Chavannes express, is no flatter than many intersections in Avoriaz. Have literally never had to unstrap or walk on Chavannes. Nothing compares to the 1km slog at the bottom of Mossettes. Likewise in Flaine, only the slickest waxed boards and skills can get around without short shuffles. Can't think of any in Chatel though.
|
|
|
|
|
|